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Sam McCardel is on a mission to take the posh out of polo. The
organiser of this weekend's Bush Polo Championship at the Whroo
Club, near Rushmore in Victoria, hopes that by calling it bush polo
the game can lose its elite tag without any of its skill.

"We coined the name bush polo to adjust everyone's expectations
a little since 'polo' has an elite image that's not good for the
sport," he said.

"People associate 'polo' with Ralph Lauren. But 'bush' is an
iconic description for anything Australian ... it fits really well
with the rugged outback dirt tracks stretching [forever], the kind
of thing Banjo Paterson used to write poems about."

Polo, a form of hockey on horseback, involves two opposing teams
of four riders. Play is usually divided into six chukkas, or
periods, of 7 minutes each, with the horses rested and swapped at
the end of each chukka. This means each rider must own a stable of
up to six horses - an expensive undertaking that puts the sport
beyond the reach of all but the rich.

But bush polo has been designed with the masses in mind.

"This weekend we're getting [riders] to use just two horses," Mr
McCardel said. "With two horses rotating across four chukkas even
the man in the street can play."

A record 40 players are taking part in Mr McCardel's event,
seven of them from NSW. One is Wayne Joyce, 45, who trains twice a
week with his teammates at Bong Bong Polo Club in Bowral.

"Our preparation has involved sinking down a couple of drinks
before the event," Mr Joyce joked, before checking himself.
"Actually, polo is a sport where you do have to be fit or you'll
let your mates down, so between the drinking we've been riding
horses and hitting balls a reasonable amount ... For me it's about
that special moment where you feel at one with the horse, and then
scoring a goal between those little white posts."